Education, for emergency?
It is true that education has never been easy, but we need to overcome the crisis of communication between the generations that prevents dialogue. The ' education as a "sign of the times." If there is an ' emergency , it goes in the etymological sense of '"emergence" of an aspect of human life, even from a crisis situation, is put under the spotlight, thus requiring a new focus.
Many voices have been raised in recent times to warn education. Among them, the authority of Benedict XVI: "There is talk of a great" educational emergency ", confirmed by the failures we encounter all too often our efforts to form sound people to collaborate with others and to give meaning to their lives. " It's just one of many interventions in which the pope recalled the grave responsibility of education, together with the difficult conditions prevailing in this fundamental requirement of human life.
The difficulties and the effort to educate today
The alarm on education has been increasing, up to generate the ' expression "educational emergency" that does not suit everyone. It would appear to suggest, in fact, a situation that calls for emergency measures, without favoring a rethink and deep as the current situation requires. If there is an emergency, it goes in the etymological sense of '"emergence" of an aspect of human life, even from a crisis situation, is put under the spotlight, thus requiring a new focus.
The crisis in the relationship between generations and the difficulty of transmitting to younger adults in a wealth of meaning poses an interesting challenge, which can encourage a rethinking of cultural anthropology. Attention should be devoted to it qualified, not because the guys have questionable behavior and appear confused and superficial, but because we realize that without education, it is impossible to grow from human beings and, as a society, have a future worthy of ' humanity. If this is true, you can not think of education as an emergency situation that falls upon us suddenly and we ask some remedy an emergency, but looking back as adults responsible for educating and developing a project that is capable of interpreting this time.
You can not downplay the difficulties and the effort to educate today: "To educate has never been easy, and now seems to become increasingly difficult."
There are incidents of bullying or acts of violence reported from time to time by the record to give the true idea of the educational. It has one of its reasons in the crisis of communication between generations. The education needs for closeness, trust, exchange. Only then will the younger adults may receive from the assets of meaning, values, ideas that help them orient themselves in life, so only adults can accommodate the disturbances, the questions, the concerns of younger, becoming its load and to the accompaniment them in their journey of growth. But there is little time available, the timing of the work is hard to reconcile with those of dialogue and encounter.
The adults are confused, have difficulty in distinguishing what is true and what is not true; struggling to find their way in the midst of situations that have changed and that crowding; situations for which one has the impression of not having the right sleeve. It is a sense of disorientation, in the literal sense of being in an "unknown country" other than you're used to. It is clear that under these conditions is difficult to give young people of the landmarks. But young people are confused. The intoxication of unlimited freedom alternates with expressions of unease, of discomfort and suffering of those who do not know the inner meaning of our existence and the conditions that give value to it.
The effort to educate depends on the fact that the adult generation seems to have come to a life plan, showing the sense in which it lives and also implicitly tell if there are possible reasons for living convincing. Today, the adult generation appears to not be able to show and tell the value and beauty of life, in all its aspects. It is as if our bag was empty or full of junk that has no value and only serves to clutter: Volume ago, but has no weight. Mesmerized by the glitter of the consumer society, yet emptied of its ephemeral nature, the adults can not tell young people the beauty of life and to show what life is worth living, "the root of the crisis in education is in fact a crisis of confidence in life. " Nell'inaridirsi consciousness manifests the crisis of generativity of the adults of today.
And, on the other hand, the adult is a condition of fatigue life for an organization so complex that it can not fail to feel tired, empty and barren. Sometimes you give up the effort made to educate, for lack of energy to sustain the commitment that educate - to be available, forget their worries and their own fatigue, be comfortable, you want to talk, discuss, discuss ... - entails.
The crisis of the value of the person, then, is the widespread cultural climate. The person is delayed in many dimensions: after being, after image, after his career. Education, in its truest meaning and higher, is possible only where there is a sense of the person and the consideration of value absolutely free to pursue its growth. Education means freedom to give each of his choices, his life, his originality, his story only where there is a mature sense of the person you experienced this dedication to deliver each one to himself.
In this context there are those who, in fact, resigns or is under the illusion that a hardening of attitudes and disciplinary sanctions can be effective. But there is also the thoughtfulness of those who are questioning, wondering what it will mean to educate in this context: what values? what processes? what content?
These considerations seem to me that emphasize that there is a crisis of vocation education. This is not an indictment towards adults, but rather is to recognize the outcome of a model of civilization that has led to the emptying of consciousness and quell'affanno of life that makes adult victims in the first place, tired, lost, folded back on themselves, and leaves the young too just in dealing with the responsibilities of life.
Education in a time of change
The complexity of the reasons that combine to determine the current situation could leave discouraged, get someone to regret the past, where the authority of parents , teachers and educators have made it easier to transmit an orientation. The situation of education must be seen against the background of the changes that are affecting the world. It is located mainly in the context of the breaking of cultural quell'omogeneità transmitting values, behaviors and lifestyles through the mentality and way of doing common. We learned to live life looking; they learned to become Christians in contact with a community that involved in an experience. The poor differentiation of the company helped in this process. But, beyond the results, not everything was so positive!
Family education was all on the shoulders of the mother and the father could exercise any authority to limit authoritarianism. The same was true for the school . Often attitudes and evaluations were made for social conformity, rather than personal conviction and choice. Public opinion was widespread censorship implied to those who deviated from the socially accepted model.
This model went into crisis with the profound change in society and has brought the crisis in educational processes. We do not know now where to take the strain of the moment, but we can not regret a time when you did so many things because the people did, beyond their own beliefs. We can not consider education one based on violence, on social conformity, fear, or a family model built on the authority of his father.
Now the recognition of an emergency education has focused on the complexity, nature, the needs of the growing process of a new interest persona.Il for Education is calling for a rethink, refresh, make appropriate educational processes. The educational crisis will help to encourage a new way of thinking about education, giving young people the opportunity to grow making personal lifestyle choices, and many adults the opportunity to fulfill their potential as men and women who are mature in their vocation generate a sense of life.
The educational crisis, therefore, is an incentive and opportunity to redefine functions, projects, inspiration, tools in educating our time.
From "emergency" to "sign of the times"?
If the current crisis is an opportunity to take responsibility in a new form of education, then education will become one of the signs of our times. In 1963, the Pacem in Terris, Pope John XXIII spoke of the emancipation of women as a sign of the times. He talked about it, although the road ahead was still long. We can hope that education can become a sign of our times, that it - with its crises and its emergencies - create a new attention to and qualified person to care for its growth in humanity. That therefore the distance education from emergency sign of our times. If, as believers and Christian communities, we will devote ourselves to make this happen, we have also helped to pursue a kind of prophecy: one that can tell a person's value and devote himself to his new sense of maturity.
For this to happen, we must make some choice definite: to resume the debate on education, never content to update the thoughts of the past, but having the freedom and boldness of a new reflection. It should also see specific aspects and problems of education in different contexts: family, school, community and Christian ... be available by all to build a great alliance for education. Nobody can go it alone: only by uniting thoughts, intuitions, impulses, effort, education will really become one of the signs of this difficult and exciting time.
- R. Iafrate, in Education: an emergency?, School Publishing, Brescia 2008, p. 74
- Benedict XVI, Letter on the urgent task of education.
(News) April 2009
author: Paola Bignardi
